Lead zirconium titanate alternatives for nanoactuators

This paper describes the use of commercially available ceramic capacitors as an alternative for lead-containing and relatively expensive lead zirconate titanate (PZT)- based nanoactuators. A PZT actuator is compared with actuators made from both X5R- and Y5V-type ceramic dielectric capacitors using white light interferometry and a spectrometer. This work is useful because these capacitors can provide an economical nanomotion capability to research laboratories or industrial products. Measuring the displacement of the capacitors is also useful when designing electronic products to ensure undesired operation is not caused by the piezoelectric motion. Additionally, unlike the PZT material, the alternative ceramic materials do not contain lead, which is needed for full compliance with the Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) initiative.